To examine the potential uses of and barriers to text-messaging in secondary schools, three classes (66 students) of high school students used their personal mobile phones to receive out of school, course-related text-messages from teachers. Forty-six students (70%) agreed to receive text-messages. Findings indicate that participants found…

Teaching children with autism to interact with their typically developing peers can be a challenge. Previous research has documented that there are many effective ways to teach social interaction; however, interventions in this regard are usually implemented by professionals. The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of…

Today, levels of mistreatment of children are internationally reported as having reached epidemic proportions. Throughout recorded history babies and young children have suffered acts of violence by parents, care providers and others. However, "some believe that, for the first time in history, we are beginning to face the true prevalence and…

In order to get a better understanding of subject design and delivery using a hybrid approach, we have studied a hybrid learning postgraduate programme offered by the University of the Andes, Bogota, Colombia. The study analyses students' perceptions of subject design and delivery, with particular reference to learning activities and the roles of…

This study examined whether social exchanges and relationships among young children and with teachers in early care and education are associated with prosocial behavior of children from diverse ethnocultural backgrounds. Social and relational factors including closeness of the teacher-child relationship, emotional tone of teacher-child…

Research Findings: This study examined the effects of educators' participation in an in-service training program on the aggressive and prosocial behaviors of preschool-age children. Seventeen early childhood educators were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. A total of 68 preschool children, 4 from each educator's classroom, also…

The importance of storytelling in social, cultural and educational contexts is well established and documented. The extension of storytelling to people with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (PIMD) has in recent years been undertaken with an emphasis on the value of sensory experience and the context storytelling provides for social…

This dissertation describes the development of a state-of-the-art immersive media environment and its potential to motivate high school youth with autism to vocally express themselves. Due to the limited availability of media environments in public education settings, studies on the use of such systems in special education contexts are rare. A…

The purpose of this study was to explore the extent to and ways in which student participants in Alternative Break (AB) programs report that their AB experience influenced their intentions or plans to volunteer, engage in advocacy, or study or travel abroad, or their major or career plans. Additional analysis explored the specific program…

Purpose: Early onset of behavioral disorders is predictive of long term adverse outcomes. There are some indicated and selective early prevention programs for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), one of the most common behavioral disorders in childhood and adolescence. The purpose of this paper is to present a universal preschool…

This study aims to examine the session goals and their realization during the session flow for a child with a hearing loss and his mother in an early intervention program. The study was designed as a case study. Video recordings of the intervention sessions, reflective journals, session plans, and the plan evaluations were used to collect and…

The influence of informal faculty/student interactions (i.e., group dinners at faculty member's home) on GPA and retention rates was investigated. Students were invited to attend dinner at a faculty member's house in groups of approximately 6 students. The academic performance and retention rates of attendees and nonattendees were compared.…

Purpose: Many classroom educational assistants (EAs) have a significant amount of responsibility in carrying out educational plans for children who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), but they receive little instruction on how to do so (Kent-Walsh & Light, 2003). This study investigates the impact of using a communication partner…

In recent years, there has been a rapid increase in the number of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), worldwide. Since children with ASD have limited social interaction and communication skills, they tend to lag behind their peers without disabilities in many areas. In particular, they are unable to easily transition smoothly…

Background: Interactive training (IT) is one of the two staff training components of the active support (AS) model. The present study explores how effective IT is when offered to staff divorced in time from the AS workshops, the other training component. We explored the effects of IT on resident activity engagement, challenging behaviours and…